9 Best Inventory Management Software for Small Businesses in 2022
Meaghan has provided content and guidance for indie retailers as the editor for a number of retail publications and a speaker at trade shows. She is Fit Small Business’s authority on retail and ecommerce.
Brigitte is a retail specialist and staff writer with brick and mortar management experience. She is versed in retail sales analysis, merchandising, and buying with an emphasis in retail sales and marketing across platforms. She has a BA in writing from Washington University, St. Louis.
This article is part of a larger series on POS Systems.
Inventory management software should help businesses track items or parts throughout the supply chain—from the manufacturer or wholesaler through assembly, storage, and sale—and have tools that give you insights into your performance and features specific to your industry.
Before deciding on a software for your small business, familiarize yourself with your business’s inventory tracking needs. For example, small businesses like retail stores typically use a simpler inventory system, often one paired with point-of-sale (POS) software, while B2B businesses need a system with more assembly or accounting tools. Large businesses need something more robust, like an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.
Based on our evaluations, the best inventory management software for small businesses are:
- Zoho Inventory: Best overall inventory management software
- Agiliron: Best for B2B retail
- EZRentOut: Best for rental companies
- Lightspeed Retail: Best for retailers
- Orderhive: Best for growing ecommerce companies
- Ordoro: Best for volume sellers and dropshippers
- Katana: Best for manufacturing companies
- MarketMan: Best for restaurants
- Orderry: Best for repair shops and services
Best Inventory Management Software Compared
Monthly Fee | Free Plan | Mobile App | Low Stock | Product Variation | Kitting | Ecommerce Integrations | Vendor Management | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
$0–$239 |  | | | | | | | |
$99–$299 |  (30-day trial) | | | | | | | |
$50–$225 | (15-day trial) | | | | | API | | |
$129–$289 | | | | | | | | |
$95–$500 | | Android only | | | | | | |
$0–$999 (inventory features start at $499) | | | | | | | | |
$129–$999+ | (14-day trial) | | | | | | | |
$149–$399 | | | | | | | | |
$19–$49 | (14-day trial) | | | | | API | |
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Zoho Inventory: Best Overall Inventory Management System
Zoho Inventory
Overall Score: 4.67
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Handles multiple channels, warehouses, and currencies
- Mobile app available
- Can monitor expiration dates on batch orders
- Bundling, composite, and kitting tools
What's Missing
- Lacks return management
- Lacks rental function
- Limited POS integrations
Zoho Inventory Pricing
- Free: 50 monthly online orders, 1 warehouse, 2 users
- Standard: $79/month for 1,500 online orders, 2 warehouses, 3 users
- Professional: $129/month for 7,500 online orders, 5 warehouses, 5 users
- Premium: $199/month for 15,000 online orders, 7 warehouses, 10 users
- Elite: $299/month for unlimited orders, 15 warehouses, 15 users
Zoho offers a variety of products for small businesses and often makes our best-of lists because it provides great value for the price. Its feature product in this article, Zoho Inventory, lets you handle multiple warehouses, ecommerce, and purchase orders all from your inventory management platform. The system has advanced bundling and kitting features for combining multiple stock-keeping units (SKUs), is customizable to different types of businesses and use cases, and has an intuitive interface. It also has features for managing perishable items, like expiration monitoring and alerts.
Zoho inventory is one of the cheapest of the inventory systems on our list, except for Orderry and EZRentOut, and offers a permanent free plan that’s excellent for limited use.
TIP: Looking for a free inventory management system? Check out our guide to the best free inventory management software in 2022.
This software earned a 4.67 out of 5 in our evaluation, the highest score of any inventory management software we considered. The warehouse management system received perfect scores on its inventory features and was the leading software for ease of use too. It ranked second for pricing. While it got a great score for its features, you may find more industry-specific tools in EZRentOut or Lightspeed, which are more targeted for rental operations and retailers, respectively. That, along with limited customer support hours, hurt its overall score.
Zoho Inventory Features
Standout Features | App for Android (4.5 stars rating on Google Play) and iOS (4.6-star rating in App Store): Add items, manage sales orders, view warehouse stock, track items, and fulfill orders from your phone or tablet. |
Works for | Retail, ecommerce, multinational, dropshipping, warehouses, and manufacturers. |
Ease of Use | Easy-to-use overall, with intuitive navigation; users say setup can be overly complex; three levels of support, with paid support 24/7; training available. |
Tracking | Track items, set reorder points, create reminders, and note preferred vendors |
Purchase Orders | Create purchase orders manually or via online sales, generate shipping labels, and get shipping updates. |
Barcoding | Barcode scanning auto-populates your fields when you create invoices, sales, or purchase orders. |
Sales Channels | Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Shopify, Zoho Commerce, and more via third-party integration. |
Integrations | 10+ shopping carts, 30+ shipping carriers, seven CRM software, two accounting platforms, eight payment processors, Slack, Microsoft, and more. |
Advanced Features | Composite function for kitting, batch tracking, expiration dates, real-time shipping rates, and in-transit details. |
Customer Reviews | Customers say Zoho is easy to use and a good value, but they report some issues with ecommerce integration and would like stronger CRM features and bin assignment. |
Agiliron: Best for B2B Retail
Agiliron
Overall Score: 4.38
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- B2B and B2C ecommerce store options
- Unlimited orders in all plans
- Integrates with Amazon and eBay stores
- International capabilities
What's Missing
- Only one user included in all plans
- Steep learning curve when learning to use the platform
- Some integrations are paid features
Agiliron Inventory Pricing
All plans include unlimited orders and 24/7 email support.
- Premier: $99/month for 1 user, 2 sales channels
- Enterprise: $199/month for 1 user, 2 sales channels, multi-location tracking, B2B store, advanced inventory tools
- Global Enterprise: $299/month for 1 user, 2 sales channels, international stores, multiple currencies
Agiliron is a multichannel management system with ecommerce, social commerce, retail, and wholesale functions. This software excels in ensuring information is not siloed, so you can find what you need wherever you are. It offers comprehensive B2B and B2C inventory features for creating custom orders, as well as kitting features, assemblies, matrixed products, and product substitutions to set this system apart. Though more complex and expensive than Zoho or Orderry, this system still ranks highly on our list because of its wide ecommerce applications, including wholesale, B2B, and B2C businesses.
It earned an overall of 4.38 out of 5 on our inventory management software assessment criteria. Agiliron scored well on advanced inventory functions, earning a perfect score like Zoho Inventory. The system would have gotten higher marks if it offered a free plan and included more users. You also need higher plans for multiple warehouses. For a less expensive—though simpler—software, Zoho Inventory is your best bet.
Agiliron Features
Standout Features | Has a B2B portal with customer-specific price settings; create and track matrix item products, serialized products, assembly products, kit products, and pre-set substitution products; access product information anywhere in the program. |
Works for | Retail, ecommerce, B2B, wholesale, and manufacturing. |
Ease of Use | Centralized inventory tracking, onboarding specialist, and an online learning center with videos; complex program with a steeper learning curve. |
Tracking | Track bin, lot, serial, style SKUs, and service products. |
Purchase Orders | Create purchase orders and assign them to accounts and salespeople. |
Barcoding | Input and track manufacturers, Amazon, or other SKUs. |
Sales Channels | Amazon, eBay, Shopify, Magneto, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, and other online stores. |
Integrations | Multiple payment solutions, QuickBooks, ShipStation, and more. |
Advanced Features | Kitting and assembly, bulk order, bulk packing slips, product substitutions, and customizations like gift wrapping. |
Customer Reviews | While customers enjoyed the range of features and said it was reasonably easy to use, several did mention that it was initially intimidating and took longer to learn. |
EZRentOut: Best for Rental Companies
EZRentOut
Overall Score: 4.32
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- B2B and B2C support
- Availability-based ordering and renting
- GPS tracking of items
- Unlimited orders on all plans
What's Missing
- Purchase order only included in higher plans
- Limited integrations in smaller plans
- Standard plan has very limited features
EZRentOut Inventory Pricing
- Standard: $49.98/month for 2 users, unlimited orders, 30 custom fields, unlimited items
- Plus: $134.97/month for 3 users, unlimited items, 30 custom fields, additional inventory and reporting features
- Premium: $224.95 for 5 users, unlimited orders, unlimited items, 30 custom fields, advanced reporting and inventory features
EZRentOut earned a place on our list because of its terrific features designed for the specific needs of rental companies, whether equipment rental for construction or sports, DVDs and entertainment, or events. While some inventory software on our list, like Orderry, track things like service or repairs, EZRentOut lets you note damage by renters. Plus, its GPS tracking tools (included in the Premium plan) make it easy to see where your equipment is at any time.
EZRentOut earned 4.32 out of 5 on our rubric—an excellent score given its specificity. It took hits for limited integrations, which, like Orderry, are primarily through Zapier—although it offers an ecommerce store for online renting and sales. Like Agiliron, it has B2B customer management tools. It took small hits in scoring because of the big discrepancies in the functionality between its lowest and highest plans.
EZRentOut Features
Standout Features | |
Works for | Audio/visual, bikes, equipment, sports, furniture and staging, events and parties, universities, and assistive technology. |
Ease of Use | Straightforward interface; knowledgebase, tutorials, 24/7 email support, and phone support during business hours. |
Tracking | GPS tracking of items, availability calendars, service and repair, track as individual pieces or bulk (e.g., 30 chairs); track consumables. |
Purchase Orders | Low-stock counts, purchase orders with higher plans. |
Barcoding | Barcode or QR code can include geo-location and IP address in higher plans. |
Sales Channels | None |
Integrations | Seven payment gateways, two CMSes, two accounting software, and multiple others. |
Advanced Features | GPS tracking of assets; online rental store, customized pricing, and route management for deliveries. |
Customer Reviews | Customers say it’s generally easy to use, but the returns process could be streamlined; they would like some customizations to installments and invoices. |
Lightspeed Retail: Best for Retailers
Lightspeed Retail
Overall Score: 4.23
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Integrates seamlessly with ecommerce and in-store POS
- Unlimited inventory entries on all plans
- Advanced CRM, vendor, and granular inventory reporting
What's Missing
- No free plan; higher price point
- User interface is unintuitive
- Does not have functions for managing perishable goods
Lightspeed Inventory Pricing
- Lean: $129/month for in-store application only, integrated payments, one-on-one onboarding
- Standard: $189/month for ecommerce and accounting integrations
- Advanced: $289/month for loyalty program and advanced reporting tools
- Enterprise: Custom pricing and features for large companies
Lightspeed Retail is a popular retail point-of-sale (POS) system, known for its inventory management features. Not only can you conduct sales both online and in-store with Lightspeed, but the platform tracks all of your inventory levels in real time across multiple locations and channels, allows you to run advanced reports, and integrates seamlessly with ecommerce stores.
Because Lightspeed focuses on retailers, when you are exploring the site, you can choose from a variety of different business types like apparel, CBD stores, gift shops, home, etc., and then Lightspeed will show you how its platform can work in your specific retail industry.
Interested in learning more about POS inventory management systems? You can check out our article on the best POS inventory systems.
While Lightspeed comes equipped with some great tools, earning it a score of 4.23 out of 5, it does have a few areas where it lacks. Unfortunately, Lightspeed lacks tools for managing perishable goods, as you find with Zoho or MarketMan. It also can be challenging to use at first, frustrating when training new employees on your POS. That, along with its higher price point and lack of a free option, brought Lightspeed’s score down.
Lightspeed also has POS systems with built-in inventory tools for restaurants and golf courses.
Lightspeed Retail Features
Standout Features | Manage your retail store operations as whole as well as you inventory all on one platform with no integrations required. |
Works for | Retail and ecommerce. |
Ease of Use | Interface can be difficult to navigate at first, but you have access to 24/7 reports and one-on-one onboarding support. |
Tracking | Track items, set reorder points, create reminders, conduct sales, transfer stock between locations, and create inventory groups. |
Purchase Orders | Create and send purchase orders; file and track them for future use. |
Barcoding | Barcode scanning auto-populates your fields when you create invoices, sales, or purchase orders. |
Integrations | Three accounting integrations, four-plus ecommerce integrations, one payroll integration, and full integrated payments with Lightspeed payments. |
Advanced Features | Custom fields for product pages, click-and-collect ordering, inventory counting features, custom reporting options, multi-location reporting, included CRM. |
Customer Reviews | Customers say that they are overall very happy with the product, but there are occasional glitches with the scanner and some growing pains during setup. |
Learn more in our full Lightspeed Retail review.
Orderhive: Best for Growing Ecommerce Companies
Orderhive
Overall Score: 4.22
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Centralized inventory across multiple channels
- Advanced purchase order options, including custom fields, duplication, and importing/exporting features
- Workflow automation
What's Missing
- Poorly rated mobile app; Android only
- Problems with some integrations
- Limited integrations for smaller plans
Orderhive Inventory Pricing
- Essentials: $95/month for 300 orders per month, 2 users, unlimited integrations in 2 categories
- Standard: $195/month for 100 orders per month, 4 users, and unlimited integrations in 4 categories
- Enhanced: $295/month for 200 orders per month, 6 users, and unlimited integrations from 8 categories
- Enterprise: $500/month for unlimited monthly order, users, and integrations
*Each plan also comes with the option to add set-up assistance for $500
If you run an ecommerce or have an online dropshipping business look to Orderhive for a relatively inexpensive solution perfect for managing inventory in ecommerce business. This highly affordable system is built for ecommerce and has strong inventory and multiwarehouse features. Not only that, Orderhive integrates with the highest number of third-party applications compared with all other providers on our list and has excellent returns management—an important feature for ecommerce.
Orderhive cloud inventory earned a respectable 4.22 on our rubric. It earned a nearly perfect score in terms of its inventory features and ease of use, but got docked in the pricing section for its lack of a free plan—if this is a consideration for you, consider Zoho.
Orderhive Features
Standout Features | Free plan for Shopify users; serialize inventory; manage variants to bundles. |
Works for | Ecommerce and dropshipping. |
Ease of Use | Intuitive interface, 20/6 technical support, onboarding assistance ($99), and knowledgebase. |
Tracking | Track serial, batch, or expiry dates, FIFO inventory rules. |
Purchase Orders | Low stock alerts, assign multiple suppliers to one product, automated PO creation. |
Barcoding | Generate and print barcodes. |
Sales Channels | Shopify, Amazon, WooCommerce, eBay, Magento, and BigCommerce. |
Integrations | 19 marketing automations, eight shopping carts, 60+ shipping services, three payment processors, four POS systems, 10 CRM platforms. |
Advanced Features | Automate ecommerce tasks for order creation, inventory, purchase orders, dropshipping; split ordering, fraud order handling. |
Customer Reviews | Customers are pleased with the price and ease of use but say that it can be buggy and some integrations (like Magento) do not work. |
Ordoro: Best for Volume Sellers & Dropshippers
Ordoro
Overall Score: 3.98
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Discounted shipping rates
- Free onboarding and training for first 30 days
- Supports multiple warehouse locations
What's Missing
- Lacks inventory management in the basic plan
- Higher price point than most inventory software
- No mobile app
Ordoro Inventory Pricing
In order to take advantage of the inventory features, you need to be subscribed to one of the following plans:
- Pro: $499 a month for purchase orders, kitting, and dropshipping
- Enterprise: $999 a month for all those included in Pro plus vendor portals, inventory allocation, and custom integrations
Flexible pricing available for seasonal businesses
While Ordoro is primarily identified as a shipping platform, it provides advanced inventory management and automated purchasing features that intuitively integrate with its shipping system. Because of this, Ordoro makes supply chain management easy and efficient—an ideal solution for dropshippers and volume sellers. It is, however, the most expensive system on our list; if you want something equally feature-rich but cheaper, Agiliron is our suggestion, followed by Orderhive for ecommerce companies, especially. Ordoro alone on our list offers seasonal pricing.
In our evaluation of inventory and warehouse management software, Ordoro earned a 3.98 out of 5. Its integrations (plus available shipping discounts) and advanced inventory management solutions (such as kitting and bundling) contributed to its high score. Ordoro lost points primarily in the pricing section for its lack of a free plan or any programs under $100 per month. If you need to minimize your inventory holding costs and save on volume shipping because of online orders, Ordoro is for you, but if you run a brick-and-mortar retail store, consider Zoho or Lightspeed.
Ordoro Features
Standout Features | Shipping integration and discounted shipping rates combined with an automated purchase tracking system, inventory data feeds from vendors, and support for multiple warehouses. |
Works for | Ecommerce stores, dropshippers, and volume sellers. |
Ease of Use | Intuitive user dashboard, online support center with videos, guides, and release notes; free onboarding and training for the first 30 days. |
Tracking | Automated tracking and low-stock alerts, dropshipped product inventory is decreased after order is marked as shipped or a label is created. |
Purchase Orders | Create purchase orders with listed suppliers, batch set up suppliers, analyze inventory costs. |
Barcoding | UPC barcodes, barcode scanning workflow (picking, packing, and verifying), purchase order scanning. |
Sales Channels | Shopify, BigCommerce, Magento, Amazon, eBay, WooCommerce, Ecwid, and more. |
Integrations | 13 shopping carts, eight shipping companies, five fulfillment services, four suppliers, one accounting software, three inventory tools, and API integration. |
Advanced Features | Bundling and kitting: fractional kits, kit-related products, products with varying quantities, multi-warehouse, and products with components. |
Customer Reviews | While customers raved about Ordoro's customer support, many asked for additional features like tracking lot codes. |
Katana: Best for Manufacturing Companies
Katana
Overall Score: 3.80
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Complete shop floor control, including supply management
- Track items by expiration date
- Manage product variants and materials
What's Missing
- Support via email only
- Higher price point for basic plan
- No mobile app
Katana Inventory Pricing
- Essential: $129/month for one user, three warehouses, unlimited items, access to native integrations; Add users $29/month
- Pro: $349/month for three shop floor operators, unlimited warehouses, multicurrency support; add full-access users at $39/month and shop floor operators at $9/month
Nearly all of the inventory management software on this list can support manufacturing with bundles and kitting features. Katana, however, is unique in that it is specifically designed for manufacturers of all sizes. It tracks products and supplies at all levels of the manufacturing process and has automatic workflows, so you can concentrate on making the best products quickly.
Katana earned an overall score of 3.8 out of 5 in our evaluation. It’s among the highest-priced—only Ordoro has higher-priced starting plans on the list. Katana also lacks a mobile app, like Orderry and Ordoro, and has limited integration capabilities compared to Shopify or Orderry. This software also lost more points for not having a free plan and for email-only customer support. However, it’s one of the few on the list that can track supplies, even by volume and expiration date, and offers batch tracking and multiwarehouse management. It even has adjustments so that you can sell products you don’t move as well.
Katana Features
Standout Features | Manage product deadlines, automate customer order processes, detailed inventory tracking, B2B and ecommerce, sales orders. |
Works for | Manufacturing for apparel, footwear, electronics and high tech, food and beverage, health, beauty, home and garden, jewelry, sports, toys, and machinery. |
Ease of Use | Simple interface, knowledgebase, tutorial videos, contact support by email only. |
Tracking | Track raw materials and finished products, see on-hand, committed, and expected stock levels, variants, and multiple warehouses. |
Purchase Orders | Low-stock and expiry dates; add multiple items to purchase orders. |
Barcoding | Auto-generate batch and internal barcodes. |
Sales Channels | Wix, ShipStation, Shopify, and WooCommerce. |
Integrations | Xero, QuickBooks, and API. |
Advanced Features | Job costing, production planning, and automated workflows. |
Customer Reviews | Users give high praise to customer support, price, and ease of use; would like to add images, have an easier time uploading documents, and have the ability to revert in real time to correct mistakes. |
MarketMan: Best for Restaurants
MarketMan
Overall Score: 3.58
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Break down every menu item by ingredient cost
- Menu reports helps you understand most and least profitable items
- Flexible integration solutions for POS and accounting software
What's Missing
- All plans are over $100
- Multiple location tracking only available on Ultimate plan
- No ecommerce integrations for online ordering
MarketMan Inventory Pricing
- Operator: $149/month for purchase orders, inventory counting and transfers, accounts payable management, POS and accounting software integrations, COGs and purchasing reporting, 20 invoice scans per month
- Professional: $199/month for supplier order automation and approvals, waste tracking, recipe costing, advanced reporting, API access, 50 invoice scans per month
- Ultimate: $399/month for 2 included vendor integrations and 300 invoice scans per month
MarketMan is a cloud-based inventory and vendor management app designed specifically for restaurants. MarketMan streamlines restaurant purchasing on to your inventory dashboard, utilizes supply tracking based on expiration dates, and allows you to manage your accounting processes from the MarketMan dashboard. All of that, paired with MarketMan’s rich bank of integrations with most popular POS systems and robust invoicing and scanning functions, make it a valuable tool for any restaurant that wants to better understand its inventory and save costs.
While MarketMan has great tools for restaurant inventory management, earning it a score of 3.58 out of 5 in our evaluation, it does lack some features that other types of retailers or manufacturers might need. Unlike Zoho or Agiliron, MarketMan lacks any plans under $100 per month and there is no free plan or trial. Additionally, the Operator plan is extremely sparse in terms of included features and integrations. There is also no CRM suite like there is with Lightspeed and Orderhive.
Learn more about restaurant inventory management software, including why MarketMan is the best option on the market.
MarketMan Features
Standout Features | Place orders in the app and send them to vendors in their preferred format, automated low stock alerts, ingredient/recipe level tracking, track in custom units (oz, lbs, size). |
Works for | Restaurants. |
Ease of Use | Simple interface for both desktop and mobile devices, onboarding assistance, contact support via email or call with limited hours. |
Tracking | Track in real time at the ingredient level; conduct counts with the mobile app scanner; create physical count sheets that match your storage areas to streamline physical counts. |
Purchase Orders | Create, approve, and receive purchase orders directly in your MarketMan dashboard; MarketMan will also keep all your past orders so you can easily use them to make repeat orders. |
Barcoding | Barcode scanner enabled on mobile devices via the mobile app. |
Sales Channels | Square, Tablet POS, Revel, Toast, Lightspeed, Lavu, Clover, EZ Dine, iKentoo, POS iTouch, Tray, and Aloha. |
Integrations | SAP, Micros, Upserve, Xer, QuickBooks, Bypass, Gastrofix, Kounta, and TouchBistro |
Advanced Features | Connect inventory controls right to your menu and the ingredients used in each dish; advanced reporting (sales, expense, purchasing, menu profitability, actual vs theoretical, cost of goods sold, and gross profits reports); manage invoices and account payable |
Customer Reviews |
Learn more in our full MarketMan review.
Orderry: Best for Repair Shops & Services
Orderry
Overall Score: 3.50
OUT OF 5
What We Like
- Inexpensive plan for microbusinesses and solopreneurs
- Specialized tools for auto service centers, plumbing, HVAC, repair shops
- Track clients’ property and your own
- Bin location tracking available
What's Missing
- Integrations via API and Zapier only; some in development
- Mobile app only works for work orders rather than inventory
- Lacks strong vendor management and purchase order functions
Orderry Inventory Pricing
- Hobby: $19/month, one employee, one location, 100 orders, one location (+$3 for each additional employee)
- Startup: $29/month, one employee, one location, unlimited orders, unlimited locations (+$4 for each additional employee and +$19 for each additional location)
- Business: $39/month, one employee, one location, unlimited orders, unlimited locations, advanced inventory locations (+$5 for each additional employee and +$29 for each additional location)
We selected Orderry for our list because it provides strong tools for repair shops of any size and any kind—from a one-man auto parts business to a computer repairs enterprise. Orderry’s management system can track tools, supplies, and even the items your customer leaves in your care, something not seen in the other software on this list. In addition, it has work order management that takes you from leads to repeat sales and includes a scheduler and more. Further, it’s the cheapest inventory management tool on our list.
Orderry earned 3.5 out of 5 on our rubric. Its offerings are not as diverse as those of Zoho or Agiliron, and it does not have ecommerce tools like Orderhive. However, it has repair-specific features like automatic write-off of products in work orders, bin control, and consumables tracking. The drawback to Orderry, however, is that you need to pay extra for additional locations or users.
Orderry Features
Standout Features | Task management; write-off inventory in work orders; track tools and customer items; bin locations. |
Works for | Repair shops of all sizes—cellphone, computer, auto, appliance, power tools, service centers, plumbing, contractors. |
Ease of Use | Live chat or email, self-guided instructions, knowledgebase, easy-to-use interface. |
Tracking | Tools, consumables, client items; bundles, bin locations, multiwarehouse; track by employee as well as location. |
Purchase Orders | Low stock alerts and supplier information only. |
Barcoding | Assign barcodes to orders, products, serial numbers, bin locations; scan barcodes; no mobile. |
Sales Channels | None |
Integrations | Zapier; most under development. |
Advanced Features | Asset tracking includes brands, models, types; can track assets being diagnosed or repaired, or assigned to employees or contractors. |
Customer Reviews | Customers say it’s a very easy-to-use software; several comments about translations needing work. |
How We Evaluated Inventory Management Software
We looked at inventory-first programs as opposed to POS programs with inventory. At least two dozen software services were examined, and from here, we narrowed our list down to systems that are easy to use and have pricing plans suited for SMBs. Important features (such as real-time and multilocation tracking), the ability to do mobile inventory counts and granular inventory, and the types of reports it can deliver (like COGS and costing reports) were also considerations.
Some other things we looked at include how well it works in industries other than retail, whether it handles multiple warehouses or sales channels, what integrations it allows, and how easy it is to get help. We did not consider enterprise-level systems.
Based on these benchmarks, Zoho Inventory is the best inventory management software for small businesses. It received the highest overall score (4.71 out of 5) among the inventory platforms we reviewed.
Click through the tabs below for our full evaluation criteria:
20%
Pricing
50%
Inventory Features
15%
Ease of Use
15%
Expert Score
20% of Overall Score
We prioritized software that include a free plan or free trial and offer a plan option under $100. We also awarded points to systems that provide an unlimited number of users and inventory items in its base plan. Orderhive and Zoho earned the highest scores, although neither had perfect scores.
50% of Overall Score
We gave heavier weight on inventory features, such as real-time tracking (includes barcoding, batch, serial, and RFID tracking), low-stock and reorder alerts (using EOQ), multi-location and warehouse tracking, mobile inventory counts, and granular inventory management (kitting and assembly, variants, etc.) We also considered whether the tools provide purchase ordering, vendor, and centralized multichannel management. Finally, we examined whether each system has CRM functionality or integrates with popular CRM software. Zoho and Agiliron both earned perfect scores.
15% of Overall Score
We gave full points to platforms that are cloud-based, offer 24/7 customer support, and provide online training, forum, or help documentation. We also considered its integrations with popular accounting, ecommerce, marketplace, and POS software. Zoho earned 4.5 out of 5, but all products scored well.
15% of Overall Score
We reviewed the overall quality of each system’s features—and if there are any stand-out qualities—and whether or not it offers a good value for its price point. Finally, we accounted for our personal experience using each system and interacting with its customer service representatives, its reviews, and the personal experience of other small business owners. We gave Orderhive a perfect score, while EZRentOut and Katana came in next with 4.75 out of 5.
*Percentages of overall score
Bottom Line
Inventory is the lifeblood of your business. Unless you have a very simple inventory that you can track with a spreadsheet, then inventory management software can save you time, headaches, and money. The right inventory management software makes the job easier. Many are tied to point-of-sale systems, but there are some that work alone or with accounting software.
You’ll find scores of inventory programs that meet a wide variety of needs. We found Zoho Inventory the best suited for most small businesses because of its price point and ease of use. It offers the most important features needed to run a smooth store and ecommerce program. Visit Zoho and try it for free.
You May Also Like …
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